Discussion
Phil Dicky said:
Cheib said:
russ_a said:
Waddle didn't single-handedly drag England through to the Euro championships!
Let's face it Beckham owed England big time after that f
king sending off against Argentina...and there was that game he played towards the end of his England career when he didn't make a single tackle!what other key games did he boss in any tournament?
decent player? yes. world class? no. marketing dream? yes.
I think Beckham's contribution to England has to be as captain, his work rate was second to none and showed a great role model in this respect to others. I think he is or was World class but without doubt there were and are far better players. Fergie wouldnt have kept him as long as he did otherwise and Real Madrid certainly wouldn't have snapped him up. Don't forget he was twice World Player of the Year runner up...according to wiki 
guns80 said:
Think Waddle has gone over the top! However didn't realise Beckham only won 1 major trophy in 4 years at Madrid. Not an amazing feat wonder how much clubs bought him for the short sales and marketabity than his on pitch talent!
You might want to use to perspective though. In 4 years , Ronaldo has only won 2 major trophies at Madrid. You can't rate a player on how many trophies they've won. I'm a Liverpool fan so would never rate a player on trophys alone to be honest was surprised when I read it. Beckham was unrivalled at crossing the ball, corners and free kicks however the rest of his game was ordinary. Certainly harsh to say not in top 1000 premiership players but could see him being outside top 50. Maybe Waddle should be asked for his top 1000 players?
You've missed his passing and range of passing. Tonight's game , his last one, served to remind me just how good he is /was. One pass , all of 60 yards, put Ibrahimovich through one on one, it was just sublime. I think he's always seen himself as a quarterback type player.
I would put him in the top 30 easily, maybe the top 20. Definitely not top 10 though.
I would put him in the top 30 easily, maybe the top 20. Definitely not top 10 though.
jcremonini said:
You've missed his passing and range of passing. Tonight's game , his last one, served to remind me just how good he is /was. One pass , all of 60 yards, put Ibrahimovich through one on one, it was just sublime. I think he's always seen himself as a quarterback type player.
I would put him in the top 30 easily, maybe the top 20. Definitely not top 10 though.
Completely agree with your first point. I would put him in the top 30 easily, maybe the top 20. Definitely not top 10 though.
I actually feel quite sorry for those who think he was "average". Perfect examples of the "what have you done for me lately" culture so prevalent today.
Gargamel said:
vladcjelli said:
We should start to compile the list of best premier league layers and see where he slots in.
Alan Shearer
Matt Le Tissier
Eric Cantona
who's next?
LampardAlan Shearer
Matt Le Tissier
Eric Cantona
who's next?
terry Henry
Ronnie
- Thierry Henry
Paul Scholes
Didier Drogba
Edited by Amirhussain on Sunday 19th May 01:03
I had the pleasure at being at Old Trafford when Beckham scored that free-kick against Greece. Saw quite a few games that year as England toured the country as Wembley was being rebuilt.
Have to say that that Beckham was the only world-class player that I saw. Owen had flashes of brilliance, Lampard and Gerrard were always average at best.
All IMHO of course...
Have to say that that Beckham was the only world-class player that I saw. Owen had flashes of brilliance, Lampard and Gerrard were always average at best.
All IMHO of course...
Beckhams talent for self promotion and marketing far outweighed his talent as a footballer.Thats not a criticism,more an observation.The problem is he gets hyped by those who aren't necessarily proper football fans,and on the flip side this can also slant the views of those on the other side of the football fence who are fed up with hearing his name.
He had a decent engine in his early to mid-career,was an excellent crosser of the ball and made the most of what he had.However,he lacked pace,was one footed and couldn't go past players,and when moved to the centre later did little other than look for the unproductive Hollywood ball, so nowhere near the absolute best out there.He also managed to con the England management(or Eriksson at least) into playing when it was blindingly obvious he wasn't fit.
Although Waddles' comments are headline grabbing nonsense, I'd imagine most proper football followers would name 15-20 past Prem midfielders that might start above him.
Good luck to the bloke,apparently a nice human being who's made the absolute most of what he was blessed with.
He had a decent engine in his early to mid-career,was an excellent crosser of the ball and made the most of what he had.However,he lacked pace,was one footed and couldn't go past players,and when moved to the centre later did little other than look for the unproductive Hollywood ball, so nowhere near the absolute best out there.He also managed to con the England management(or Eriksson at least) into playing when it was blindingly obvious he wasn't fit.
Although Waddles' comments are headline grabbing nonsense, I'd imagine most proper football followers would name 15-20 past Prem midfielders that might start above him.
Good luck to the bloke,apparently a nice human being who's made the absolute most of what he was blessed with.
He could take a good free kick too. 
http://youtu.be/puRNPoYZpKk
Whether you think he was good, great, or average who cares? As a Liverpool fan all I'll remember about Becks will be his performances for England. How, whenever we needed something and we got a free kick, corner, penalty or the ball out wide to him, that little bubble of hope would rise up as we had Becks on the field and he might just pull one out of the bag, again.
When I'm old enough to have Grandkids and they ask me about him, I'll tell them about Greece. How one man, dragged his team around the field, refusing to lie down, and then hit the most perfect free-kick to get us to the finals.
Enjoy your retirement Becks. You deserve it, and thanks.
http://youtu.be/puRNPoYZpKk
Whether you think he was good, great, or average who cares? As a Liverpool fan all I'll remember about Becks will be his performances for England. How, whenever we needed something and we got a free kick, corner, penalty or the ball out wide to him, that little bubble of hope would rise up as we had Becks on the field and he might just pull one out of the bag, again.
When I'm old enough to have Grandkids and they ask me about him, I'll tell them about Greece. How one man, dragged his team around the field, refusing to lie down, and then hit the most perfect free-kick to get us to the finals.
Enjoy your retirement Becks. You deserve it, and thanks.
Amirhussain said:
Gargamel said:
vladcjelli said:
We should start to compile the list of best premier league layers and see where he slots in.
Alan Shearer
Matt Le Tissier
Eric Cantona
who's next?
LampardAlan Shearer
Matt Le Tissier
Eric Cantona
who's next?
terry Henry
Ronnie
- Thierry Henry
Paul Scholes
Didier Drogba
Edited by Amirhussain on Sunday 19th May 01:03
Alonso (massively underated, Gerrard has done nothing since he went)
Bergkamp
Vieira, Cech, Kompany, Bergkamp, Ronaldo etc etc
It's a long list. Never voted PFA player of the year either.
If anyone thinks he went to any of Real, AC Milan or PSG because of anything other than marketing they're nuts.....Real Madrid were quoted as saying they couldn't believe what Man U sold him for such was the marketing value. Every move he has made has been driven by money....we're talking about the guy that loves playing football at the highest level so much that he buggered off to MLS at the age of 32...sure if you're a player that relies on pace I can see it at that age but for someone that never relied on pace?
It's a long list. Never voted PFA player of the year either.
If anyone thinks he went to any of Real, AC Milan or PSG because of anything other than marketing they're nuts.....Real Madrid were quoted as saying they couldn't believe what Man U sold him for such was the marketing value. Every move he has made has been driven by money....we're talking about the guy that loves playing football at the highest level so much that he buggered off to MLS at the age of 32...sure if you're a player that relies on pace I can see it at that age but for someone that never relied on pace?
AV12 said:
Waddle talking twaddle.
The comment about not making into the top 1,000 was twaddle but I actually think Waddle was a more talented player than Beckham so perhaps there's a sense of injustice and/or jealousy there (Beckham's nowhere near as good as me but look at what he's won, earned, etc, etc)?I think of Becks as a latter day version of Kevin Keegan as he was also someone who worked incredibly hard and made the most of what by his own admission was limited talent compared to others; he also did pretty well for himself out of things like advertising and merchandising. Obviously things are now on a completely different level from what they were in the late 70's and early 80's but essentially Beckham has used the Keegan blueprint and taken it up several notches!
I wouldn't have Becks down as a great player but he was a good servant for both the clubs he played for and for England; he's also showed what can be achieved if you want it enough. Therefore, thanks for everything and all the best for your retirement is what I say!
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